Tribe Lands in Victoria
After a long, 16-hour bus trip from Red Deer to Victoria, which included a ferry ride to Vancouver Island, the Moose Jaw Warriors are back on solid ground today.
This is the Warriors’ first trip onto the island after the Victoria Royals relocated from Chilliwack before last season and it was new experience for many of the players to hit the open waters of the Strait of Georgia.
“I’ve never experienced this,” said team captain Kendall McFaull, who hails from Rosetown, Saskatchewan. “I’ve rode on a ferry across the Saskatchewan River, but that’s nothing compared to what we’re doing. It’s pretty exciting and nice to stretch the legs after a long bus ride.”
The team were on the ferry for just under two hours, but it was a night time ride, meaning the players didn’t get a chance to see any wildlife. McFaull says he’s hoping they can spot some dolphins on the way back on Wednesday. “I’ve swam with them before, so it would be kind of neat to see them in their element,” said the 20-year-old defenceman.
The bus trip, which won’t be the team’s longest on this BC Division trek – that will be their 18-hour ride home from Prince George on December 4th. For McFaull, he says even though the long hours take their toll on the body they are a good chance for the team to bond closer together.
“We’re all still kids, you can say I’m not a kid anymore, but I’ll act like it sometimes and to bond with the guys is huge. Even just on this bus trip and the times we’ve had has been pretty fun.”
Now that their back on land, the tribe will be looking to get back on solid ground when it comes to their win/loss record over the next couple days. They opened their road trip with a pair of losses as they fell 5-1 in Edmonton on Friday and 2-1 in a shootout on Saturday in Red Deer.
The Warriors will skate on Monday at Save-On-Foods Centre before taking on Victoria on Tuesday and the Vancouver Giants on Wednesday. McFaull says getting the day to work on things will be big, “After the long bus trip, it’s huge to go into the practice and build off our last game. We didn’t get the result that we wanted, but we had the work ethic and performance that we needed.
“It’s going to be a tough next few days, so we’ve got to work hard and keep the tempo in practice up.”
The Warriors and Royals hook up on Tuesday night at 9:05pm Saskatchewan time. The Pre-Game Show will be on the air on Country 100 at 8:40pm.
